Company News - percussion ensemble

Featured Video: HEXACHRON by Matt Moore

Posted

Check out Matt Moore's most recent percussion ensemble, HEXACHRON, as performed by the Stephen F. Austin State University (SFASU) Percussion Ensemble.


Stephen F. Austin State University, Dr. Brad Meyer, director

Hexachron channels the raw energy and intricate architecture of progressive metal through the lens of chamber percussion ensemble. While the bulk of the piece is written in 6/4, that meter is rarely felt straight-ahead. Instead, it’s refracted through layered polyrhythms, rhythmic illusions, and constantly shifting subdivisions that destabilize the listener’s sense of time - yet somehow regularly lock into a groove that feels instinctively right.

The harmonic language leans bright but unstable, embracing sharp dissonances, tritone-rich sonorities, and unexpected modulations that echo the genre’s love for contrast and surprise. At its heart, Hexachron is a deconstruction of rhythmic perception—a piece where time bends, pulses collide, and six never quite feels like six.

Hexachron channels the raw energy and intricate architecture of progressive metal through the lens of chamber percussion ensemble. While the bulk of the piece is written in 6/4, that meter is rarely felt straight-ahead. Instead, it’s refracted through layered polyrhythms, rhythmic illusions, and constantly shifting subdivisions that destabilize the listener’s sense of time - yet somehow regularly lock into a groove that feels instinctively right.

Composer Spotlight: Michael Crawford

DR. MICHAEL CRAWFORD is an active musician, educator, and adjudicator based in the Dallas/Fort Worth area metroplex. He currently serves as an adjunct faculty member at the University of North Texas (UNT) where he teaches the Percussion Methods course for undergraduate music education majors and supervises band student teachers. Dr. Crawford holds a B.M. [...]

Read More »

Featured Video: BLACK WIDOW by Bradley Baird

BLACK WIDOW is a chamber percussion ensemble for Solo Snare Drum accompanied by Marimba Quartet. The first deadly spider that comes to mind for many people is the black widow spider. Its daunting characteristics and portrayal in pop culture makes it widely known and recognized. While brainstorming titles for this work, I was (un)fortunate enough to [...]

Read More »

Featured Video: ImPULSE by Austin Franklin

ImPULSE for percussion quartet was written for an aleatoric set of non-pitched percussion instruments, chosen by the performers according to only a few instructions given in the score. The piece is composed in two parts, held together by a somewhat constant quarter note pulse, from which the title is derived. This pulse grows in intensity [...]

Read More »

Featured Video: Payload by Adam Bruce

PAYLOAD is an energetic chamber piece for six percussionists, cello, and contrabass. Inspired by the sheer power and driving force produced by the rocket boosters for a space shuttle launch, it portrays a mixture of experiences one might have while taking off, leaving the atmosphere, and the suspension of gravity.Performed by members of the University [...]

Read More »

Composer Spotlight: Dave Hall

DAVE HALL is Associate Professor of Percussion and coordinator of the percussion program at the University of Nebraska. Under his direction, the University of Nebraska Percussion Ensemble was selected to perform a showcase concert at PASIC in both 2019 and 2016 as winners of the Percussive Arts Society International Percussion Ensemble Competition (IPEC). Before his [...]

Read More »

Featured Video: Photovoltaic by Matthew Kilby

PHOTOVOLTAIC is an ethereal, yet catchy percussion ensemble piece that uses a diverse harmonic pallet and intense metric interplay. The piece depicts the quantum mechanical interaction between photons and electrons that could power our society’s future.

Read More »

Composer Spotlight: Matthew Kilby

MATTHEW KILBY is an educator and performer in North Charleston, South Carolina. He is currently Associate Band Director and Percussion Instructor at Fort Dorchester High School, where he won Rookie Teacher of the Year in 2019. He also assists with the Gateway Program, teaching gifted and talented young percussionists in Dorchester School District 2. Matthew earned his [...]

Read More »

Composer Spotlight: Amanda Sycamore

AMANDA SYCAMORE has been performing and teaching private lessons in the Triad area of North Carolina for over 20 years. She holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Music Education and a Masters in Percussion Performance from the UNCG School of Music. Amanda is currently the Principle Percussionist for the Salisbury Symphony Orchestra and is a member [...]

Read More »

Featured Video: GOLGOTHA by Adam Bruce

GOLGOTHA is a highly programmatic piece that chronicles the final hours of Jesus’ life. The rich imagery and careful orchestration throughout highlights not only the events experienced in that time by those present but also the deep internal struggle Jesus faced in his crucifixion. The work begins at the last supper with musical lines referencing [...]

Read More »

×
×